Recoil mechanism



Dec. 17, 1963 1:. ASHLEY 3,114,291

RECOIL MECHANISM Filed Dec. 30, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR EUGENE ASHLEY BY 52 W ATTORNEY Dec. 17, 1963 E. ASHLEY 3,

RECOIL MECHANISM Filed Dec. 50, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR EUGENE ASHLEY flM/ w, 7%

Dec. 17, 1963 E. ASHLEY RECOIL MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec. 30, 1960 lNVENTOR EUGENE ASHLEY BYW ATTORNEL Unite dildi ll Patented Dee. lF, lQfiB 3,114,291 REC QEL MECHANESM Eugene Ashley, Burlington, Vt, assiguor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Dec. 3%, was, Ser. No. 79,634 7 Claims. (Cl. 8 l2) -s and may be provided with a trail at the rear which terminates in spade wi to orevent tcoil.

The force of recoil is directed towards the rear subch can be dug into the ground ue carriage from rolling biaicl's/ards upon rebarrel is elevated cted towards the cannon is fired with sh lly in line with the barrel.

y, therefore, the recoil Go the other if the barrel led horizontally, it coi .ill be directed at point above the spade and thereby cause a turning moment of the barrel about the This turning rho-merit tends to cause the cannon uneels to rise oil he ground and the cannon to overturn, an will hereafte be referred to as the overturning moment. The primary, and in most cases only, counterbaiancing moment to the overturning moment is produced by the weight of the cannon. The magnitude of the overturning moment for a specific cannon dependent upon the momentum imparted to the shell fired by t cannon. it is evident that this momentum is limited by the counterbalancirrg moment, for if the latter moment is exceeded, the cannon will be overt-urns An obvious means for enabling the rnomennum which can be given a shell to be increased without increasing the overturning moment to the point where the cannon might overturn, is to increase the weight of the carmon. It is evident, however, that increasing the weight would be atended by other problems, not the least of would be the trans" bility of the cannon.

s th re object of this invention to provide a recoil mechanism which will produce a counter-balancing moment to the overturning moment.

it is a iu ther o jcot of this invention to provide a recoil mechal n which will enable the magnitude or" the counter-balancing moment produced to be adjusted.

it is also object or this invention to rovide a recoil mechanism which will permit a decrease in the weight of a cannon without decreasing its ability to absorb large recoil moments.

it is an a d onal obj of this invention to provide a recoil mes which X produce a counterabalaocing moment to the overturning moment according to a programmed It also an object of this inveduon to provide a recoil mechanism wh ch will continually produce a counter-ba1- arcing force through a large portion of the recoil of the weapon.

Brie-fly st= ed, in carrying out the invention in one form, which may be preferred, a recoiliug carriage is slidably mounted upon the fixed carriage of the cannon. The barrel is secured to this recoiling carriage by means of levers which are arranged so that the barrel can become spaced upwardly from the recalling carriage although re nraining parallel to it. The relative movement of some recoiling part rel tive to some portion of the fixed carriage upon recoil is utilized to cause the lovers to displace the barrel upwardly as it recoils in an arrangement such 2 that the ratio of the rates of upward to rearward movement of the barrel continuously increases to a maximum up" movement rate. This resultant compound moverr it of the barrel creates a continuing downward reaction which adds to the weight of the cannon to counter-balance the overturning moment.

The invention will be better understood firc rn the following description taken in connection with the accompartying drawings in which:

PEGURE 1 is a schematic elevation of a iricorporatin a first embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a schematic elevation of a cannon incorporating second embodiment of the invention;

BGURE 3 is a schematic plan view of a portion of the cannon of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a schematic elevation of the cannon of FIGURE 2 shown in a recoiled position; and

FIGURE 5 is a schematic exploded perspective vi of a portion of a mechanism representing a modified onibodirnent of the invention.

Referring now to FIGURE 1, a fixed gun carriage l is shown supported by a wheel 2 and a trail 3. Pivotally mounted on the fixed carriage 1 is a cradle 4 wl 'cli is arranged to be rotated up or down by an elevating mechanism not shown. The barrel 5 is secured to the cradle 4 by a lever 6 near the front of the cradle 5, and by an operating lever '7 located further to the rear. A 'guideway S is mounted on the cradle d and contains a link 9 slidable therein to which are attached both the lower end of the ever 6 by a pin lit and the operating lever 7 by a pin Ell. The distance between pins ill and 15 is made substantially equal to the distance between pins ll and 14, these distances being measured along levers 6 and '7, respectively. arrangement of barrel levers and link just described therefore constitutes a four-bar linkage or parallelogram structure such that any movement of the barrel relative to the cradle will not disturb the substantially parallel relationship of the barrel 5 and the guideway 8.

Pivotally attached at one end to the cradle 4 is an ad justi. g guideway 12 which is shown as being straight but which may be curved. The adjusting guideway 12 is movable about its pivot 12:: so that the angular relation between the guideway 8 on the cradle and the adjusting guideway 12 can he varied. A suitable adjusting mechanism, not shown, is provided for this purpose. A block 313 is contained in the adiustinig guideway 12 for sliding movement along this guideway and is rotatably attached to the lower end of the operating lever 7.

The operation of the invention will now be described. Upon recoil the barrel 5 moves to the rear at he same tine forou'ig the link 9 to move to the rear in the guideway The block 13 in the adjusting guideway 12 also moves to the roar, but because of the downward slope of the guideway, moves downwardly as well. in its rearward movement, therefore, the lever 7 rotates and changes from a pos ion close to horizontal to one closer to vcr tics-l. The

barrel 5 is therefore displaced upwardly from initial position parallel to and adjacent to the cradle 4, to a position parallel to and spaced above the cradle.

Since this displacement of the barrel 4 relative to the guide way 8 occurs at the same time that the barrel is moving towards the rear, a resultant compound movement of the barrel is produced. As the barrel moves lanther to the rear the upward nate of movement continuously increases relative to the rearward rate. This upward acceleration produces a downward reaction v/hic tends to counterbalance the overturning moment.

If the adjusting guideway 12 is moved down so as to m ke a greater angle between the :guideway 3 and the guideway 12, a i eater rate of upward displacement of the barrel will occur for a given movement of the link 9 towards the rear. At the some time if the angle enclosed bly 24 on the left side of the barrel.

3 by the guiderway 8 and the adjusting guideway 12 is diminished, a smaller rate of upward displacement of the barrel will occur for given displacement of the link 9 towards the rear of the guideway 8. file more severe the upward rate or" movement or" the barrel is made, the greater the reaction against the ground which will be achieved.

As was briefly indicated previously, the greatest overturning moment occurs when the barrel is aimed in a horizontal or in some cases downward direction. The overturning moment decreases as the barrel is elevated until the barrel is in line with the spade when it becomes zero. Further elevation of the barrel causes a reaction due to the recoil into the ground which has no tendency to overturn the cannon.

For the foregoing reasons, it may be desirable to coordinate the position of the adjusting guideway 12. with the elevation of the barrel 5 by an arrangement such that, when the barrel is elevated, the angle enclosed by the guideway 8 and the adjusting guideway 12 is decreased. This is possible since the overturning moment is also decreased as the barrel is elevated.

Referring now to FIGURES 2, 3, and 4, a second embodiment of the invention Will be described. Those parts which are similar to parts described in connection with FIGURE 1 of the drawings will be given the same reference numerals. A cannon is shown having a carriage 1, wheels 2, a trail 3, a pivotally mounted cradle 4, and a barrel 5. All these elements perform the same functions which the similarly numbered parts performed in the embodiment shown in FIGURE 1. Slidably mounted on the cradle 4 is a recoiling carriage 20. A guideway 21 on .the right side of the cradle 4 and a similar guideway 22 on the left side of the cradle restrict the movement of the recoiling carriage 29 to axial movement along these guideways. The barrel 5 is secured to the recoiling carriage 20 at the forward end by a folded lever assembly 23 on the right side of the barrel and a similar folded lever assem- The barrel is further secured to the recoiling carriage 20 at the rear of the recoiling carriage by a folded lever assembly 25 on the right side of the barrel and a folded lever assembly 26 on the left side of the barrel. These lever assemblies are shown in their folded positions in FIGURE 2 and in their unfolded positions in FIGURE 4. Rigidly secured to the bottom of the folded lever assembly 25, as seen in FIG- URE 3, is a crank arm 27 on the right side of the barrel 5. In a similar manner, on the left side of the barrel 5 is provided a crank arm 28 which is rigidly secured to the folded lever assembly 26.

A guide bar 39 is pivotally mounted at one end on the cradle 4 by means of a support member 31. A guide bar adjusting screw 32 is provided for changing the slope of the guide bar by rotating the guide bar about its pivot point. In a similar manner, on the left side of the barrel, a guide bar 33 is pivotally mounted at one end to a support member 34 on the cradle 4 and is provided with an adjusting screw 35. A stud 4% on the end of crank arm 27 and a similar stud 41 on crank arm 28 are provided to be carried in and guided by the guide bars 30 and 33 respectively.

In operation, the barrel 5 and the recoiling carriage 20 both move to the rear upon recoil. By means of the guide bars 39 and 33, the studs 40 and 41, respectively, are forced to travel downwardly as the recoiling carriage 20 moves to the rear. This downward motion of one end of both of the crank arms 27 and 28 causes these crank arms to rotate. The rotation of the crank arm 27 causes a similar rotation in the lower arm 42 of the folded arm assembly 25 due to the rigid connection of shaft 36 between these members.

In order to convert the rotation of the lower arm 42 into a counter-rotation of the upper arm 43 of the folded arm assembly 25 and thereby :cause the folded arm assembly 25 to unfold, a sprocket wheel 44 is fixedly secured to the recoiling carriage 2i and a sprocket wheel 45 is fixedly secured to the shaft 46 which is journaled in the upper end of the lower arm 42. Rotation of the lower arm 42 therefore causes the roller chain 5-7, which passes about both of the sprocket wheels to cause the sprocket wheel 45 to rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow 48, FIG- URE 4, and thereby causes rotation of the shaft 46. The upper arm 43 is fixed to the shaft 46 so that rotation of the shaft 46 causes a rotation of the upper arm 43 which is counter in direction to that of the lower arm 42.

The folded arm assembly 25 is thereby unfolded. In a similar manner, on the left side of the barrel 5, the folded arm assembly 26 comprises a lower arm 50, a shaft 56 rigidly connecting lower arm 5% and crank arm 28, an upper arm 51, a fixed sprocket wheel 52, a sprocket wheel 53, and a shaft 54 constituting the connection between the sprocket 53 and the upper arm 51. By the apparatus just described, it will be seen, that the recoil of the recoiling carriage 2t) institutes an unfolding of the folded arm assemblies 25 and 26.

The unfolding of the folded arm assemblies 25 and 26 will only cause the rear end of the barrel 5 to move up wardiy upon recoil. Additional mechanisms are necessary in order to cause a corresponding upward movement of the 'front end of the barrel 5. In order to provide synchronized movement of the folded arm mechanism 23 and 24 with the folded .arm assemblies 25 and 26, respectively, suitable connecting linkages or coordinating means, not shown, betweenthe respective folded arm assemblies may be provided. An alternative method of accomplishing this result, is to provide guide bars and crank arms for the forward folded arm assemblies 23 and 24 of the same type as those provided for the rear folded arm as semblies 25 and 26, as represented in the drawings.

As has been previously indicated, the maximum rate of upward acceleration of the barrel 5 is desired when the barrel is aimed at low depressed, or horizontal elevations, and a lesser rate of upward acceleration of the barrel 5 is required when the barrel is elevated to a greater degree. Since the upward movement of the barrel 5 is dependent upon the slope of the guide bar 34) in such a way that the greater the slope the greater the rate of upward movement of the barrel, the guide bar adjusting screw 32 can be connected so as to operate in a direction reverse to the elevating mechanism for the cannon. By this arrangement, as the barrel 5 is raised the slope of the guide bars is decreased. In FIGURE 2, the elevating gear box 55 is therefore shown as being operatively connected to the guidebar adjusting screw 32.

Upon firing the cannon, therefore, the barrel 5 moves from the position shown in FIGURE 2 to a position such as that illustrated in FIGURE 4. It should be remem bered, however, that the movement of the barrel is not only upward, but also, as can be seen by the initial and final positions of the recoiling carriage 20, a movement to the rear. The path which the barrel follows in moving from its initial to its final positions can be varied by varying the slope of the guide bar.

The necessity for a continuously increasing ratio of the rate of upward movement to rearward movement results from the nature of a recoil. The barrel moves from 7 an initially still position and accelerates to the rear on fining. At some point in the rearward motion of the barrel a maximum velocity is reached and deceleration begins. The overturning force results from the acceleration of the barrel and since this acceleration continues over a finite period, the overturning moment produced also continues for this period. It will be evident therefore that the counterbalancing moment, to be effective, should be produced at substantially the same rate that the overturning moment develops. This result is required since, if the barrel .were directed upwardly in a straight line, the counterbalancing moment would be produced only at the instant when the change of direction of the barrel was made from straight back to upwardly in a straight line..

In this invention, therefore, as the barrel path continually changes in direction, a counter-balancing moment is continually produced.

Referring now to FIGURE 5, an alternative operating mechanism for unfolding the folded arm assemblies will now be described. (Since this alternative mechanism is so located that its details would not be visible in a conventional drawing representing the complete cannon, FIGURE represents only those parts essential for an understanding of the mechanism and the mode of its attachment to parts of the cannon represented in other of the figures.) The recoiling carriage 2t) incorporates a crosshead 6i} mounted for sliding movement in the axial direction of and positioned transversely to the barrel 5. This crosshead 5i} incorporates a slot or guideway 61 adapted to have a stud positioned therein. A bell crank 62 is pivotally mounted on the sliding carriage by means of a fastener 63. A stud 64 at the end of one arm of the bell crank 62 is positioned in the transverse slot 61 in the crosshead 6G. Pivotally mounted on the non-recoiling cradle of FIGURE 2 is the guide bar 65. The guide bar as is horizontal but arranged so as to form an angle with the axis of the barrel. Suitable adjusting means, not shown, may be provided for adjusting this angle of the guide bar 65 relative to the axds of the barrel 5. A groove 65 in the guide bar 65 is adapted to carry and guide a downwardly extending stud 67 which is located (as represented) at the end of the upper arm of the bell crank 62.

Upon recoil, the recoiling carriage 2% moves relative to the cradle 4 carrying with it the fastener 63 and, therefore, the bell crank 62. As the bell crank 62 moves to the rear, the stud 57 is guided in the groove 66 from a position initially on the left side of the barrel towards a position on the right thereby causing the bell crank 62 to rotate about the fastener 63, and further causing the first arm of the bell crank having the stud 64 to also rotate. It will be evident that the bell crank 62 rotates in a counter-clockwise direction (viewed from above) as the recoiling carriage moves to the rear, thereby causing the crosshead 61 to be moved forward relative to the recoiling carriage 2t).

This motion of the crosshead relative to the recoiling carriage is utilized to cause the folded arm assemblies previously described to unfold. This result is accomplished by providing a roller chain 63 which is fixed at one portion along its length to the left side of the crosshead and by providing a similar roller chain 69 which is fixed at one portion to the right side of the crosshead 6t).

The folded arm assemblies 2 5 and 25 are slightly modified from the structure previously described in that a sprocket wheel 7 it is fixed to the lower arm of the folded arm assembly 24 and a similar sprocket wheel 71 is fixed to the lower arm of the folded arm assembly 26. The roller chain 68 passes around the sprocket wheels 7t and '71 so that movement of this chain due to the motion of the crosshead tilt causes a rotation of the sprocket wheels. When the sprocket wheels 7t) and '71 rotate they cause the lower arms of the folded arm assemblies 24 and 26 respectively to rise and the folded arm assemblies 24 and 26 are caused to unfold as has been previously described. The art of mechanical movements is an extremely crowded one, and my teachings herein will suggest immediately to those skilled in the art many variations of the principles I have taught. Thus, for example, a cannon barrel might be provided with trunnions at two points along its length, and these trunnions might be movably installed in slots in bearing plates, the slots being designed in accordance with the usual practice in cam design to provide the desired ratio of upward to backward displacement.

While particular embodiments of cannons employing this invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious that changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A cannon comprising a carriage fixed against movement on recoil, a cannon barrel, lever means mounting said barrel on said carriage to form a four-bar linkage for combined upward and rearward movement on recoil in a manner to maintain the elevation of the barrel at the time of firing, and guideway means on said carriage operatively engaging said lever means to cause said lever means to rotate as said barrel recoils so that the ratio of the rates of upward to rearward movement of the barrel con tinuously increases to a maximum. 2. A cannon comprising a carriage fixed against movement on recoil, a cradle pivotally mounted on said carriage, a recoiling carriage slidably mounted on said cradle, a cannon barrel, lever means securing said barrel to said recoiling carriage for combined upward and rearward movement on recoil in a manner to maintain the elevation of the barrel at the time of firing, and means utilizing the movement of said recoiling carriage relative to said cradle upon recoil to cause said lever means to rotate as said barrel recoils so that the ratio of the rates of upward to rearward movement of the barrel continuously increases to a maximum. 3. A cannon comprising a carriage fixed against movement on recoil, a cradle pivotally mounted on said carriage, a recoiling carriage slidably mounted on said cradle, a cannon barrel, recoil means for mounting said barrel on said carriage for combined upward and rearward movement on recoil in a manner to maintain the elevation of the barrel at the time of firing, said recoil means including a first pair of folded lever assemblies securing said barrel to the forward end of said recoiling carriage, a second pair of folded lever assemblies securing said barrel to the rearward end of said recoiling carriage, means for controlling the operation of said recoil means and causing said folded lever assemblies to unfold upon recoil so that the ratio of the rates of upward to rearward movement of the barrel continuously increases to a maximum. 4. A cannon as defined in claim 3 wherein said last named means comprises a pair of guideways adjustably secured to said cradle,

and a pair of cranks respectively operatively connected at one end to said second pair of folded lever assemblies and respectively operatively connected at the other end to said pair of guideways. 5. In a recoil mechanism for a cannon having a barrel and a recoiling carriage,

a folded arm assembly securing said barrel to said recoiling carriage comprising, an upper arm rotatably secured to said barrel at one end, a first shaft fixedly secured to said upper arm at its other end, a lower arm rotatably secured to said first shaft at one end, a second shaft fixedly secured to said lower arm at its other end, a first sprocket wheel fixedly secured to said first shaft, a second sprocket wheel rotatably mounted on said second shaft and fixedly secured to said recoiling carriage,

a linked chain operatively connecting said first and sec- 'ond sprocket wheels and a rank fixedly secured to said second shaft, whereby when said cranl' is turned said folded arm assembly will unfold and said barrel will be raised relative to said recoiling carriage.

6. A cannon comprising a carriage fixed against movement on recoil,

a cradle pivotally mounted on said carriage,

a recoiling carriage slidably mounted on said cradle,

a cannon barrel,

folded lever means for mounting said barrel'on said recoiling carriage for combined upward and rearward movement on recoil in a manner to maintain the elevation of the barrel at the time of firing,

a cross-head slidably mounted on said recoiling carriage for relative movement thereto,

a guideway in said cross-head,

an adjustably mounted guide bar secured to said cradle.

a bell crank pivotally secured to said recoiling carriage,

said bell crank including a first arm operatively engaging said guideway and a second arm operatively engaging said adjustably mounted guide bar whereby movement of said recoiling carriage relative to said cradle causes rotation of said bell crank about its smear pivot and said cross-head is caused to move relative to said recoiiing carriage, and

means actuated by the movement of said cross-head relative to said recoiling carriage to cause said folded lever means to unfold so that the ratio of the rates of unward to rearward movement of the barrel continuously increases to a maximum.

7. A cannon comprising a carriage fixed against movement on recoil,

a cannon barrel,

recoil means for mounting said barrel on said carriage for combined upward and rearward movement on recoil in a manner to maintain the elevation of the barrel at the time of firing, and

means for controlling the operation of said recoil means to direct the movement of said barrel upon recoil in a path having a continuously changing radius of curvature.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 339,795 Malet Apr. 13, 1886 FOREIGN PATENTS 23,047 Great Britain Dec. 14, 1892 

1. A CANNON COMPRISING A CARRIAGE FIXED AGAINST MOVEMENT ON RECOIL, A CANNON BARREL, LEVER MEANS MOUNTING SAID BARREL ON SAID CARRIAGE TO FORM A FOUR-BAR LINKAGE FOR COMBINED UPWARD AND REARWARD MOVEMENT ON RECOIL IN A MANNER TO MAINTAIN THE ELEVATION OF THE BARREL AT THE TIME OF FIRING, AND GUIDEWAY MEANS ON SAID CARRIAGE OPERATIVELY ENGAGING SAID LEVER MEANS TO CAUSE SAID LEVER MEANS TO ROTATE AS SAID BARREL RECOILS SO THAT THE RATIO OF THE RATES OF UPWARD TO REARWARD MOVEMENT OF THE BARREL CONTINUOUSLY INCREASES TO A MAXIMUM. 